Student Researches VR for Safer Lab Learning

McNeese State University’s Medical Laboratory Science program is exploring virtual reality (VR) as a tool for training. Through the CDC’s OneLab initiative, the program received three Meta Quest 3 headsets at no cost. Since fall 2024, three students have studied how VR might enhance education and practice in medical labs.

Their research focused on the effectiveness and user experience of the OneLab VR platform, which simulates 12 laboratory settings covering 50,000 square feet. Junior student Sujata Rai Shrestha emphasized that VR enables access to expensive or hazardous equipment in a safe, virtual setting.

Shrestha explained that virtual labs allow users to interact with all necessary equipment typically found in real laboratory settings, while also eliminating the risk associated with handling hazardous materials. She found that VR could serve as an effective addition to conventional methods used in medical laboratory education.